1. On the motion of Mrs. Sears, an executive session was held pursuant
to A.R.S. §38-431.03.A.(3) and (4), discussion or consultation for legal advice
from the attorney for the Governing Board and District regarding audit report
of the Arizona State Retirement System.

The executive session ended at 6:05 p.m.

STUDY SESSION

1. Review of Agenda ItemsThe Board briefly
reviewed the agenda.

2. Review of the Governing Board CalendarThe Board briefly reviewed its calendar through
December 2017.

3. Discussion on District Capital NeedsMr. Thompson led the discussion on
District capital needs. He reviewed the bond limitations and informed the Board
that bond monies can be used to purchase work trucks and delivery vehicles.
Bond monies cannot be used to purchase administrative vehicles.

He reviewed the following three options
available to the Board in calling for a capital override and/or bond election,
as well as the increased costs to the taxpayer:

New $230
million bond plus the current bond debt

New
District Additional Assistance (DAA) override plus the current bond debt

DAA
override, $200 million bond, plus the current bond debt

Ms. Stein provided a summary of recent
election results from various districts. Mr. Thompson reviewed the recommended
timeline. He stressed the importance to educate the community on the election.

4. Report on Delegate Assembly from Board Member Elaine MinerThis item was not
addressed. Mrs. Miner will provide the Board members a finalized copy of the
2018 Political Agenda in their weekly packet.

5. Updates from Superintendents/Ken AlexanderMr. McCord advised the Board that he is currently in
contract negotiations with Gilbert Public Schools for the position of
superintendent.

Due to time constraints, Mr. Alexander will be rescheduled
for a future Board meeting.

REGULAR MEETING

1. MinutesOn the motion of Mrs. Sears, the Board
unanimously approved the minutes of a regular meeting held on September 12,
2017.

2. Personnel RequestsOn the motion of Mr. Smith, the Board
unanimously approved the certificated and classified personnel requests,
including an addendum.

3. Consent AgendaAt the request of the Board, the Memorandum of Understanding
with the Homeless Youth Correction was pulled from the consent agenda for a
separate vote.

On the motion of Mrs.
Miner, the Board unanimously approved the consent agenda according to the
recommended action for each item.

4. MOUOn the motion of Mr.
Smith, the Board unanimously approved the Memorandum of Understanding with the
Homeless Youth Connection, changing the date from June 30, 2017 to June 30,
2018.

5. Superintendent's ReportDr. Cowan
reported on the following:

The first quarter
ends on Friday, October 6, and October break is October 9 to October 13. School
resumes on Monday, October 16.

Due to October break, the only televised
Governing Board meeting will be on October 24.

Parent-teacher
conferences at the elementary schools begin on October 16. This is an important
time for parents and educators to connect in person and chart the course to
success for students.

The 37th
annual College Fair will be hosted by Dobson High School on Monday, October 23,
from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Students and families will meet representatives from
universities, colleges, technical schools, military services, businesses, and
industries. It’s a great opportunity for students to explore college- and
career-path options. This year, more than 160 local state and national
organizations will be represented.

The 2017 Latino
Youth Conference is Tuesday, October 24, at Mesa Community College. Mesa Public
Schools is proud to sponsor this event, where Latino high school students
districtwide participate in a variety of workshops and discussions with
community leaders.

The 15th
annual Latino Town Hall, hosted by the Mesa Association of Hispanic Citizens,
takes place on Saturday, October 28, at the Mesa Arts Center.

The Mesa Arts
Center also hosts the annual Dia de los Muertos Festival on October 28 and 29.
There will be performances from orchestras, specialty groups, duets, and the
youth mariachi group, Mariachi Sones del Desierto.

6. Student and Staff RecognitionsFor the first time in Mesa Public Schools history, two
teachers from the same school, Summit Academy, were selected as 2017 Arizona IB
teachers of the year. Dotti Craw and Brittany Schreiber received this award for
their distinguished teaching performances and fidelity to International
Baccalaureate principles and practices.

Dotti, 5th grade teacher, was selected as the 2017
Arizona IB Primary Years Program Teacher of the Year. Brittany, 7th
and 8th grade IB Honors Science, was named 2017 Arizona IB Middle
Years Teacher of the Year.

Frankie O’Neill and Hanna Morgan, Westwood High School
seniors, are the 2017 Arizona IB Diploma Program Students of the Year. They
received this designation for their distinguished academic performances and
exemplary fidelity to the IB Learner Profile.

Mesa Public Schools is committed to offering students the
best opportunities to meet their academic goals. The rigorous International
Baccalaureate Diploma Programme is a recognized leader in the field of
international education, encouraging students to be active learners,
well-rounded individuals, and engaged world citizens.

The class of 2018 includes seven National Merit
semifinalists. Less than one percent of seniors nationwide achieve this
prestigious standing, which is based on their performance on last year’s PSAT.
The semifinalists are:

Whitnee Forest, Red
Mountain High School

Ashlyn Laird, Red
Mountain High School

Mark Merrill, Mountain
View High School

Zachary O’Bryant, Mesa
High School

Courtney Tetlow, Red
Mountain High School

Trinity Wolff, Red
Mountain High School

Jessica Yan, Westwood
High School

The next steps for the scholars include completing all the
requirements to move on to finalist status, where they will compete for 7,500
Merit Scholarships, worth more than $32 million.

Jessica Yan was also named a 2018 Distinguished Young Woman of
Arizona. The Distinguished Young Woman program combines the chance to win
college scholarships with a program that offers life-skills training to prepare
young women for the world after high school. Participants are evaluated on
scholastics, interview, talent, fitness, and self-expression. Jessica will
represent Arizona in the national competition next summer in Alabama.

7. School and Department SpotlightsThis evening’s
Spotlight Recognitions include Edison and Jefferson elementary schools,
Westwood High School, and the Health Services and Audiology departments.

Shawn Lynch, Westwood
High School principal, announced the following awardees:

Genessee Montes, Jefferson Elementary School principal,
announced the following awardees:

Outstanding Student –
Presley Follett, 6th grade

Volunteers
Extraordinaire – Bill and Sharon Lawson

Employee Who Makes a
Difference – James Stiffler, facility assistant

Customer Service
Champion – Edna Corona, family support specialist

8. Presentation on the Innovative School Ideas Task Force ReportMrs. Williams made a
presentation on the innovative school ideas task force report. The task force
gathered community input, reviewed the input and divided it into categories,
and developed recommendations based on community feedback. Feedback shows that
parents would like to see dual language offered at more elementary schools. The
task force also recommends moving
the Montessori program to an existing campus that is under-enrolled. The
Lincoln Center model of instruction is working well at one elementary school
and is developing at a second. The committee suggests expanding this training
to two more elementary schools.

The committee would
like to integrate CTE into schools and adapt science kits to reflect CTE career
pathways at each grade level. Included in instruction would be elements of
service learning, civic engagement, and environmental awareness. Parents would
like to see gifted services extended below 3rd grade and discussed a
gifted preschool and possible enrichment time for K-2 students. Parents also indicated
a strong interest Project Based Learning.

The task force is
interested in repurposing a junior high school to create a small high school
atmosphere with an accelerated academic focus. They also looked at running an
adjacent tract to the current junior high population with a music or arts focus
to meet the needs of performing arts students and their parents who are looking
for integrated training and lessons.

Mrs. Williams stated
that the committee worried about the need for additional funding to move
forward with these ideas.

9. Qualified Evaluators for the 2017-2018 School YearOn the motion of Mrs.
Miner, the Board unanimously approved the qualified evaluators for the Mesa
Unified School District teacher performance evaluation system for the 2017-2018
school year.

10. Second HearingsA second hearing was held on proposed changes to Governing
Board Policy AD – Educational Philosophy. Dr. Lesar reviewed the proposed
changes. He recommended that this policy be deleted because the topics covered
in this policy are addressed in Policy KD: Parent Involvement in Education.

On the motion of Mr. Smith, the Board unanimously approved
the deletion of Governing Board Policy AD.

A second hearing was held on proposed changes to Governing
Board Policy AE – Educational Goals and Objectives. Dr. Lesar reviewed the
proposed changes and recommended the policy be renamed Vision, Mission, Values
and rewritten to reflect the District’s vision – “Unprecedented Excellence in
Education.”

On the motion of Mrs. Sears, the Board
unanimously approved the changes to Governing Board Policy AE.

11. Video/Call to the PublicA video on the Call to the Public procedures was shown.

Priscilla Romero, Ivette Sosa Barraza, Brenda Alvarez,
Ricardo Escarceja, and Evelyne Rodas Castillo, Westwood High School Latin Club
members, thanked the Board and administration for their support of DACA students.